Leaderboard

Hi all; Picked up an 01 limited 5 speed to flip this week. The seller claimed new head gaskets, new oe timing set , new factory thermostat. heads sent off to machine shop. All done in Jan 18. I was shown the bill. Car ran good until may then started overheating. Would run apx 25 miles before heating up. Putting pressure into the radiator just like a 25 D engine... having never come across a cyl. leaking head gasket on a 2.5 1 I went under the assumption that I would find a cracked head. Inspection of the spark plugs after bringing it home showed #1 plug water stained. While pulling the motor I saw that indeed a new timing set was on the car, not OE but not junk. The "new" thermostat had 1/4" holes drilled into it ,no doubt by the seller hoping to fix his heating up problem. My thought at that point was a low rent machine shop swapping out heads instead of rebuilding what was brought to them. Seller claimed he had the head gaskets done because they were oil dripping & he wanted to get another 100,00 out of his car... When removing the first head I could see that factory gaskets were not used ... after head was off, the problem was glaringly apparent, total crap quality head gasket !!! I have never seen a gasket deteriorate like this one had! In only 5 months ! No name left on the gasket if it ever had one. I pulled the other head and it would have been leaking any day! No proof but I have no doubt they were china gaskets.... The seller paid almost $1800 for this work, $200 alone for head gaskets and bolts! Moral of the story... Factory original parts ! If you can not do the work yourself... find a real Subaru shop. You usually get what you pay for... sometimes you get even less. He sold me the car for $800... costly little fix by a non subaru shop for him... nice clean car for me.

Hey guys, I got my car back. Nothing but a bent up steering column and broken plastic cover. Radio is gone and some other little items. Glad to have it back in one piece.

Coat a new o-ring with some RTV and you will be fine. I did mine in 2005 and it is still holding (fingers crossed!). Good luck, Sam

The new one I fished out of and Autozone assortment ended up feeling tighter than what probably was the stock replacement that czny sent me,which measures .115 in thickness with a micrometer . The old flat one was just slightly tight. I figured the thicker one might be safer with my old metal pipe cause it took a fair amount of filing to get it to where it was half clean metal again. I probably really ought to get a new pipe! filed.. steel wool lassoed, back & forth about 30 times here's the other end (rubber hose from bottom of radiator goes over it) - I think I REALLY ought to get a new pipe - (or maybe a new car)

You have 5 choices: 1. Complain till they fix it. Possibly including standing out front of the dealership with a sign that reads "Ask me how I like my driver's seat!" 2. Pay for a new seat 3. Pay for a used seat 4. Trade in or sell the vehicle. 5. Light the vehicle on fire in front of the dealership and urinate on the ashes. This list is, of course, not entirely exhaustive. There are more exotic solutions should the means be available to you.... first Subaru in orbit for example. GD

The newer style tripod joint axles don't have any retaining mechanism to hold the tripod into the cup of the inner joint. You have pulled the joint apart. You will have to probably disconnect the ball joint to get some play so you can manipulate it back into the joint. You will just have to play with it till it slips back in. As for the axle nut - you need an impact. Either electric/pneumatic or a 4lb drilling hammer and a 1/2 ratchet, etc. GD